Naruto: Generations
by Tryingtowriteprostyle
Summary: Journey to the future of Konoha and witness the adventures of the descendants of the number one, knuckle head ninja. Do they have to potential to turn the tide against a powerful foe hellbent on a vengence over a decade in the making?
1. Chapter 1

"Hey! Wait for me!" A young girl cried to a girl running ahead of her.

"I can't stand around and wait for your slow butt to catch up with me all day, Miyuki. I've got to get home! Dad's expecting me!"

"He's expecting me too, you know? You're not his only daughter, Natsuko." Miyuki said.

"Yeah, but, I'm first born. I'm special." Natsuko said.

"You are one week older than me. A full seven days, that's it. So stop trying to pull the whole big sister routine."

"Aw, is the little habanero jealous of me?"

"I'm not jealous of you in the slightest, Blondie. And why do you keep calling me a habanero?"

"Well, dad told me about Grandma and her old nickname. And, since you've got that fiery red hair on your head, it seems perfect."

"Well, at least my hair grants me a nickname with some bite. Your hair looks like dried out wheat!"

"I know. Golden, the color of perfection."

"God you can be a right royal pain in the butt."

"And that's why you love me."

"You're lucky that we're family. I might not love you otherwise. I honestly feel forced to care about you. Some nights, I wish upon the stars to grant me the life of an only child."

Natsuko suddenly put on the brakes and dug her heels into the ground to stop her momentum. Her eyes began to water as she turned to face Miyuki.

"You don't really mean that, do you sis?"

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't." Miyuki said as she slowed to a meager walk to pass Natsuko.

"Miyuki!" Natsuko sobbed.

"Oh, jeez. Not the waterworks again. Man, anytime any member of the family kids you like that, you get like this. You take family seriously, don't you? 'Sigh' Natsuko, listen. You're my sister and I love you with all my heart. Nothing, especially not a couple of stupid sibling rivalry jokes, is going to change that. Okay?"

Suddenly, Natsuko's face beamed with a broad grin and her tears nigh on disappeared.

"I know, just wanted to hear you say it. Now come on! I'll race you to dad's office!"

Natsuko then took off at full speed and leaped into the tree line above to get more ground covered.

"Crocodile tears? Really? Oh, you are going to get it, sister. Here I come!" Miyuki shouted before dashing off.

Just then, two men with large dogs came into the spot where the girls had just been.

"God, do they ever get tired?" The younger man complained.

"You already know the answer to that, Haruto. No, they don't. Although, considering whose kids they are, you shouldn't expect anything less." The older man said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, dad. Alright, let's go, Hoshiko!" Haruto called to his faithful companion.

The huge dog barked in affirmation and took off with its master.

"You know, Akamaru, of all the puppies you and your mate had, the only one that looked exactly like you was the only girl in the litter. You'd think at least one of the boys would favor you, but no. And then my son, who favors his mom looks wise, picks her as his partner. I always thought it'd be you and me all over again when we had kids. Never would have picked this. Guess I should try to have a little more imagination, huh?"

Akamaru nodded and then looked off towards the direction the others had gone.

"Yeah, you're right. We should get going. Let's go, boy!"

Running as hard as their legs would carry them, and jumping a little further than that, the two men caught up with the girls. The two were staring at the great village that lay at the bottom of the hill they were standing on.

"Ah, Konoha at last! I can feel my powers returning!" Natsuko cried, stretching her arms towards the sky.

"You mean the powers that let you be amazingly loud?" Miyuki griped, twirling a finger in her right ear to get her hearing back.

"Amongst other things." Natsuko replied matter-of-factly.

Miyuki scanned her sister's form.

"You know, your chest isn't that wide, so how do you have the lung capacity to yell as loud as you do?"

"Another part of my super powers. My body is capable of doing things it shouldn't be able to."

"How long are you going to keep this super power bit up?"

"Until you are sufficiently annoyed."

"Already there…" Miyuki growled lowly.

"Alright, that's enough. Come on you two. Let's go make the report." The older man said.

"Yes sir, Kiba-sensei!" Natsuko yelled and took off running again.

"Wait up, Natsuko!" Miyuki yelled.

"Here we go again." Haruto said.

Eventually, the gang reached the entrance to the Village's academy. Two guards stood out front, as per usual.

"Ah, Lady Natsuko and Lady Miyuki, welcome back." One of the men said.

"Hey there, Shinjiro-san. Whatcha been up to?" Natsuko asked the man.

"Same as ever, my lady. Standing guard over the administration offices."

"Don't you ever get bored? And what about you, Akihiko-san?" Natsuko asked the other man.

"Well, thankfully, nothing ever happens, so it's an easy job. But, that also means that it gets a little dull." Shinjiro stated.

"Well, when do you guys get off?" Miyuki asked.

"Six o'clock tonight, ma'am." Akihiko said.

"And do you work tomorrow?"

"No ma'am. That's the second shift crew's responsibility."

"Well, they've been slacking, haven't they? I can just sense it." Natsuko said.

"Well, one or two hasn't shown up for work." Shinjiro asked.

"How often is that?" Miyuki asked.

"Well, every other day, seems like." Akihiko said.

"Unacceptable! Natsuko, you thinking what I'm thinking?" Miyuki asked her sister.

"Yes ma'am, I am. Boys, by order of the Hokage's daughters, when you get off work tonight, you are to party it up like wild. And don't even think about tomorrow's shift, no matter what you hear. We'll make sure they get here and stay here, no matter what!" Natsuko cried, shooting a thumbs up.

"Just leave it to us, ya know?" Miyuki said, getting excited by the idea of 'laying down the law' to the second shift crew.

"Hmm, how very Kushina of you, Miyuki." Natsuko kidded her sister.

"What? Kushina?"

"You said 'ya know', just like her. Boy, with that hair, that temper and that verbal tic, you're going to turn into another Kushina Uzumaki."

"Is that such a bad thing? She was strong, kind, loyal, beautiful. Everything you're not."

"Hey, I'm all of those things, ya know!" Natsuko cried, getting flustered.

"Verbal tic." Miyuki said plainly.

"What...oh, I said it too, huh?"

"That you did. So glad I got it out of you." Miyuki said with a grin.

"Yeah, yeah. I guess we're both like her, huh?"

"Well, we are her granddaughters. Anyway, sibling squabbles aside; you just leave this to us, guys."

"Thank you very much, my ladies." Shinjiro said with a bow.

"No prob. Alright. Let's go." Natsuko said as she walked up to the door and opened it.

The group quickly made their way to a large door with the symbol for fire painted proudly on the door. Natsuko quickly wrapped on the door with her knuckles.

"Come in!" cried a male voice.

As the squad entered the room, the village leader, the Hokage, turned around in his chair.

"Well, well, if it isn't squad ten. Back a little early aren't you?"

"Well, that's because the bandits attacked sooner than predicted." Kiba said.

"Give me the details."

Kiba set about explaining how the mission had gone.

"I see. Sounds like you had quite the throw down."

"Nothing we couldn't handle. We're not known as the best butt kickers in the village for nothing." Natsuko piped up.

"Natsuko! We're speaking with the Hokage! Show some respect!" Miyuki yelled.

"What? Dad knows how I talk. He expects it from me."

"He may be our dad, but he's still Hokage. We're not in family mode right now, so show some proper respect."

"It's alright, Miyuki. I know what to expect from your sister by now." The Hokage said

"But, lord Hokage…"

The Hokage waved Miyuki's protests off and turned to Kiba who continued speaking.

"Well, as always, your daughters are to be commended for their roles. Their fighting abilities are top notch. Much better than a lot of the other graduates from their class from what I've heard and seen. Miyuki, in particular, has excelled to an unbelievable level of skill when it comes to medical jutsu. Whatever Sakura-san and Lady Tsunade are teaching her; make sure they keep it up. You see, one bandit used some type of smoke pellet that released a cloud of what I'm assuming to have been a kin to pepper spray. Try as we might, Akamaru and I couldn't help but get it into our noses. Knowing our abilities, you can imagine the problems that caused, lord Hokage. With that momentary distraction, a couple of the other bandits managed to slice my right shoulder pretty deep. At that point, and points to her for this, Natsuko used a strong wind jutsu to clear the smoke."

"I just wish I could have gone through the hand signs faster. I might've been able to keep you from getting hurt in the first place, Kiba-sensei. Man, why does the grand cyclone jutsu have to have so many hand signs?" Natsuko said.

"It's alright, Natsuko. I'm just glad you blew the cloud away when you did. Any longer in there and I don't want to imagine what would've happened to me and Akamaru. And I'm also glad Miyuki was there. She patched me up in a jiffy. My shoulder hasn't felt this good in a long, long time. She even managed to clear my and Akamaru's noses of any remnants of the smoke and healed our nasal passages of any damage. Damn fine work, if I do say so myself. And while this was going on, I'm proud to say that Haruto and Hoshiko performed the mightiest fang over fang attack I've seen yet. They took out at least eight of the fifteen total bandits that way. And after that, Natsuko personally defeated the final six with about twelve clones, and then smashed the ribs of their leader, the very last bandit standing, with a rasengan. All in all, a lot of bloody impressive work from Team ten which saved the Great Naruto Bridge in the land of waves."

"Did the repairs get finished?"

"They sure did. We actually would've been home even sooner, but we all thought it'd be for the best to stay until the repairs were done. We even helped finish it."

"Well, fantastic work, everyone. You all deserve a nice long break to commemorate a job well done. Kiba-san, Haruto-san, you are dismissed until further notice. Go enjoy yourselves, guys. You earned it."

"Thank you, sir! Come on, Haruto, let's go."

"Right behind you, dad. Oh, wait! Natsuko!"

"I still got it. Hang on."

Natsuko reached into the large pouch attached to the waistband of the back of her pants. She produced a slightly larger than normal kunai with the symbols for both copy and explosive on it.

"Here you go." Natsuko said, handing over the item.

"Thanks for holding it for me. I didn't have enough room in my gear for it."

"No prob. What's the point of having big ol' pouches on your clothes if you're not going to carry anything in them?"

"Well, still, thanks. Mom's gonna be so excited, huh, dad?"

"I imagine so, considering those are pretty hard to find nowadays. Yup, you don't see many replicating bomb kunais anymore. I personally wish I knew how they work. I mean, just adding a simple bit of chakra can give an inanimate object the power to generate clones of itself and that all explode on contact. I really want that explained to me. Anyway, since it's pretty rare, I imagine Ten-Ten will be very pleased. Plus, you got it for free as reward for fending off the bandits. Bonus!"

Haruto smiled and nodded. Then he and Kiba bowed to the Hokage before leaving.

"Kiba and Ten-Ten, there's a couple I never would've put together back in the day. Neji and Ten-Ten sure, but not Kiba. One of these days, I'm gonna have to ask what got them together."

Then, a loud growl broke through the room. The Hokage and Miyuki turned towards Natsuko.

"Dad, I'm really hungry. Can we get stop by Ichiraku on the way home?

"How do you know he's even done with his work for the day, Natsuko?" Miyuki asked.

"Truth be told, there's still some paper I need to get to. But, I can do that at home before dinner. Alright, girls. We'll make a lunch stop at Ichiraku and then head home. I believe everyone should be waiting for you. I'll send a clone on ahead to inform them."

The Hokage created a quick hand sign and a split second later an exact duplicate of him appeared.

"We'll be there as soon as we can. You know who to inform." The Hokage told them clone.

The clone nodded and took off.

"Alright, let's go, girls."

"Alright! I can't wait to have a Naruto bowl! Hey, that's named after you, right dad?"

Naruto smiled.

"Sure is. Best damn thing in the shop too. Now come on! Let's go!"


	2. Chapter 2

Naruto and his daughters walked down the road towards the Hokage mansion. All the while, Natsuko was patting her stomach with a satisfied grin.

"Ah, nothing tastes better than Ichiraku ramen after a mission."

"Agreed, but did you really need to eat so much, Natsuko? I'm surprised you're not sick right now." Miyuki said from her spot right next to Natsuko.

"Hey, you know my metabolism. I could probably eat Ichiraku all day without a problem. And don't act like you didn't eat a lot too, Miss two Naruto bowls and five spring rolls."

"Oh, you saw all that, huh?"

"When I'm sitting just two feet away from you, in a little shack, it's kind of hard not to notice things."

"Okay, girls, enough. No need to pick at each other for everything." Naruto said.

"But, dad, that's what makes us sisters." Natsuko said.

"Yeah, siblings always pick at each other to some extent. It's kind of like a game only siblings can play. And they can do it because, inside, they know no harm is meant from anybody; it's just good natured ribbing. Watch this for example. Natsuko, your head is so damn big that it makes the faces on the Hokage monument look tiny."

"And your hair, Miyuki, is so stupidly long that it convinces me that it's not real. You have to be wearing a wig. Which means you're actually bald! Ha-ha!"

"See? We both take a shot and neither is mad, because it means nothing. Sure, sometimes we actually do make each other mad by accident, but for the most part it's all in good fun. And we make sure to apologize if one of us ever upsets the other, even if only by accident."

"Heh, it amazes me what you girls can get down to an exact science. Hmm, I wonder if Hinata and Hanabi-chan are that way too."

"Knowing mom probably not. You know she lights up red as a tomato at the drop of a hat. So, she probably couldn't do that with aunt Hanabi." Natsuko said.

"Maybe you're right, Natsuko."

"Hey, speaking of moms, is mine at home too, dad?" Miyuki asked.

"Yes, Miyuki. Sakura-chan's waiting for you at home. You know, she was just saying this morning how much she missed you. I imagine she's getting a little antsy right now, since I know my clone filled her in on your return. You have no idea how much your mom loves you. In her mind, every second with you is a blessing."

"Hey, dad, can you remind me how I came to be again?" Miyuki said in a begging voice.

"Well, you know I can't tell that tale without going over how Natsuko came to be again."

"That's fine. I like every part of this origin story of ours. It's an emotional rollercoaster. A mixture of sad and happy. So I like to hear all of it."

"Okay then. You see, over the course of the events that lead to the fourth great ninja war, I found myself growing increasingly closer to Hinata. I'd always thought that Sakura-chan was the one I had to have, so I kept ignoring the one girl that honestly loved me that was standing right behind me. Then, she goes and throws herself against Pain in order to protect me. And just before he struck her down, she admitted her feelings for me. And I've told you what happened after that."

"You went six tails, followed closely by eight, and nearly blew up everything." Natsuko said matter-of-factly.

"Blunt, isn't she?" Miyuki said, placing her right hand tightly over her sister's mouth.

"Yeah, but she's right. That's what happened. And then a whole mess of craziness happened, including getting to meet my mom inside my own mind, and we found ourselves in the midst of the fourth war. And it wasn't Sakura-chan who stood by me as I hit the battlefield. It was Hinata. She even snapped me out of a funk I was in after Neji was killed. And she was right with me for most of the fighting. And there was some crazy fighting. Heck, we fought an incomplete but still revived ten tails for crying out loud. And the meek girl I'd been overlooking was the one full of bravery and standing by my side. After the war ended, Sasuke and I had our big final battle, which I'm still amazed we both survived. And it was Hinata who was with me through the whole recovery process afterwards. Sure, Sakura-chan patched me up and visited me in the hospital every day until I was released, even brought flowers from Ino's place. But Hinata came too. And her visits lasted longer. And she came to see me even after I'd been released. She said she knew that while my body was okay now, my mind was still in turmoil. Once again, I'd failed to bring Sasuke back. To this day, I still don't know where he is. He and I both lost consciousness after the final blows had struck. I know we were both barely alive. I heard from Kakashi-sensei that they'd tried to collect Sasuke, but that Jugo guy and that Karin girl intervened and took him away. I don't know if Sasuke later died from his injuries or if they saved him somehow. And, as much as it hurt and would hurt again to fight someone I considered to be like a brother, I'd still take the fighting over the constant what-if's that pop up every time I think about it. Anyway, Hinata knew I carried that burden. So, she did everything she could to make me feel better. And this went on for weeks. Eventually, I asked her if this was her way of getting something close to a date from me. Of course, she stuttered wildly in response and proceeded to turn about fifteen different shades of red before passing out. I rushed out immediately, got ahold of smelling salts and came back and revived her. When she woke up, I apologized for doing that to her and she said it was alright. Then, with the smelling firmly in hand just in case, I asked Hinata if she really did love me, while reminding her of what she'd said when she fought Pain. She stuttered quite a bit, but eventually choked out a heartfelt yes. Then I told her that, while it might've been because of all the attention she was giving me, I still felt our bond growing stronger. She smiled broadly to that and then looked me in the eye. I could tell she was summoning every drop of courage she had. And then she asked me, if Sakura-chan wasn't around, who would I go for? I told her honestly that I'd probably go for someone like her. And then I remembered and told her about how I'd met my mom. How she told me about the day I was born and she died. About some of things she said to me as her final words on that day. One of them was that she wanted me to find someone like her. And I admitted I wasn't sure whether she meant someone who was like her personality wise, cause that's definitely more up Sakura-chan's alley, or if she meant to find somebody that really cared about me like she had with dad. And then Hinata said that she wished she could've met my mom, because she bet she was beautiful. I told her she was, and that her name was Kushina Uzumaki. Then Hinata recalled that her mom had mentioned knowing a Kushina Uzumaki as a kid. She said she was strong willed, but loyal to her true friends. And she said that she'd talked with her about future children. Hinata's mom told her that my mom had said that she hoped her kids grew up to be brave and strong and would ultimately find happiness with someone who truly loved them with all their heart. And then it dawned on me that was what mom had probably meant and I told Hinata that. Then I thought about it for a second and asked Hinata a question that resulted in the second use of the salts. I asked her if she'd be willing to help me honor my mom's wishes. Once I revived her again, she said yes and we started dating. Over time, I developed a strong love for Hinata. I still cared about Sakura-chan, she was practically family to me after all, but as for a love interest, well, Hinata was filling that role pretty well. About two years passed and the day came where Grandma Tsunade finally decided she was ready to retire. She nominated me as her successor and, after a little convincing on her part, the council agreed. And I was made the official sixth Hokage. I'd finally achieved my childhood dream. And, Hinata, well she beamed with pride from ear to ear. About three days after that, I asked Hinata to marry me. She stuttered so much I was afraid her brain was shorting out, but she finally whispered a yes. A month later, we were happily married. Then, after about four months, Hinata noticed some things were wrong with her body. Certain things that were supposed to happen at certain times weren't happening. So, she went to visit Sakura-chan, who had become a leader among the medical ninja alongside Shizune and Grandma Tsunade. Sakura-chan did some tests and the results came back that Hinata was expecting little Natsuko. She was only a month along, so not really showing yet. When Hinata told me the news later on that day, I was nearly floored to say the least. But, I was happy that was going to have a family. Then, a week, later Sakura-chan came to us. She told us about how she'd come to terms with the Sasuke situation and realized that she wasn't getting any younger. She wasn't that old, only about eighteen or so, but she knew time kept marching forward. And, she wanted one thing for her future. She wanted to be a mother. As a kid with crush, she'd wanted to be the mother Sasuke's kids, but now she knew he'd probably sooner stab her through the heart that have babies with her. So, she told us that she'd thought about who else would make a great a father figure for her children. Eventually, she'd narrowed it down to me. She then purposed a relatively unused procedure back then called artificial insemination. Basically, they could take, um, 'material' from me and use it to help make a baby for Sakura-chan. After a lot of heartfelt words, that included how she was definitely not trying to steal me from Hinata, the two of us agreed to it. Within a few days, we'd done the procedure. A couple weeks later, Sakura told us the good news. Miyuki was on her way. I then told Sakura that she had to move in with us. I'd already discussed it Hinata and she agreed that it would be best to keep every member of our family that we could under one roof. Sakura-chan admitted she hated her landlord, but didn't want to intrude. We convinced her it was no problem and thus Sakura-chan moved in. Months later, Natsuko was born the exact day the doctors had predicted, May eighteenth. Sakura-chan still had about a month and half left. But, Miyuki, you just wouldn't wait that long. One week later, you were born prematurely but still strong, on May twenty-fifth. And I was the proud father of two beautiful little girls. Sure, some people raised eyebrows once they'd heard how you two came to be, but I shut them up real quick. I made sure no one would try to drive the stake of 'half siblings' between you two. I wanted you to love each as much as full siblings. And it makes me happy to know that you do."

"Ah, I love that story. It's so romantic and heartfelt. It should be a movie." Miyuki said.

"Heh, maybe someday. But, we'll have to omit that part were you have little nine-tail cubs inside you."

"Yeah, how does that work?" Natsuko asked.

"Well, after you two were born, I noticed that you seemed stronger than any other children your age. I felt something was amiss. So, I paid a visit to Kumara and asked him. He explained to me that, ever since we'd gone through the training to gain level of synchronization that we have, we'd basically gone beyond sealed beast and vessel. We were now more like two minds sharing the same body. Our whole existences were interwoven. So much so that, when my, uh, material bonded your mothers', a part of his power went along with it. And basically, it merged with your mothers' chakras in a similar way to how male and female genetics mix to make babies and gave rise to two new chakra beings."

"I.E., the daughters of Kurama the nine tailed fox." Natsuko said.

"Exactly. It really doesn't make a lot sense, but hey, when your Jinchuriki, what does? Anyway, I put appropriate seals on you and once you turned sixteen a month ago, I figured you were ready to start training to get in synch with your foxes."

"And no matter what she thinks of me, I'm glad to know Akahana." Natsuko said, rubbing her stomach.

"I like Chikako no matter what too." Miyuki said, mirroring her sister.

"Heh, with attitudes like that, I'm sure you'll learn how to use nine-tails chakra mode perfectly in no time!" Naruto said, shooting his daughters a thumbs up.

The sixteen year olds beamed and could hear minor grunts of indifference inside their minds, signifying that the foxes were listening.

"I will be friends with you. We'll be the ultimate pair." Both sisters thought of their foxes.

"Well, come on, girls. Let's hurry. We can't keep your moms waiting."

"Right, let's go!" Natsuko cried and took off.

Running at top speed, the three soon reached Hokage mansion. The guards outside bowed to Naruto and quickly parted for him and his daughters to enter the building.

"I'm home!" Naruto yelled.

Naruto could hear two sets of footsteps hurrying to the door.

"Naruto!" Two women called as they reached the door.

One was the bearer of pupil-less, soft lavender eyes and long, raven black hair. She wore a purple sleeveless shirt with dark blue pants. The other saw the world through bright green eyes and had short hair as pink as cotton candy. She wore a red zip up summer jacket with no sleeves and a hood over top a black short sleeve shirt and a red, knee length skirt. Both the skirt and the jacket bore large circles on them.

"Welcome home, dear." Hinata said, smiling brightly.

"Welcome home, Naruto. So, uh, was that telling the truth?" Sakura asked.

Naruto merely stepped out of the way to reveal Natsuko and Miyuki.

"Natsuko!" Hinata said.

"Miyuki!" Sakura called.

"Mom!" Both girls yelled and ran to their mothers.

"I missed you, mom. I know the land of waves isn't that far from here with modern travel, but still." Natsuko said as she pressed into her mother.

"I missed you too, sweetheart." Hinata said as she gazed in her daughter's pale blue, pupil-less eyes.

"Did you miss me like I missed you, mom?" Miyuki asked.

Sakura messed up her daughter's hair and grinned widely.

"Of course I missed you. You're my number one, you know that."

The Uzumaki-Haruno family continued their happy reunion; a black haired young man with red eyes approached a metal case in a secluded hideout far from Konoha or any other village.

"Don't worry, father. I'm narrowing in on one of them I will gather them all. Then, I will use their power to amplify my own. Then, I will restore you, and together, we will destroy those who have wronged us."

"Are you positive you don't want someone to accompany you?" A woman with long red hair asked she approached the girl.

"I said I don't need any help. Why do you keep insisting on bringing this up?"

The woman rolled up her sleeve, revealing numerous bite marks from human teeth.

"I'm your mother, Yoru. I naturally worry about you. I believe in your abilities. Do not think that I don't. It's just maternal instinct. So…" The woman said as she approached the box and turned to the boy.

"Fine! If it'll ease your nerves, I'll take Jugo with me. Suigetsu is out looking for more intel, otherwise I'd take him too. Anything to please my dear mother." Yoru said.

"Jugo will be plenty. Just keep an eye on him."

"Yes, I know. The safety net concept. I've got it down pat. Now, if you'll excuse me, mother, I've got some century old powers to obtain." Yoru said as he turned his back to his mother and left.

"Good luck, Yoru. Now then."

The woman opened the case to reveal an unconscious man with jet black hair.

"I wish you could see him. Our son's so strong. I'm not proud of the way he was conceived, but I know you'd be proud to call him kin. I just know you would. Now's let's begin your infusion for today."

The woman opened the man's mouth and forced his teeth into her exposed arm. Chakra flowed from the bite into the man.

"Oh, soon. Soon Yoru will get what he needs to revive you. Then, we won't have to do this every day. Won't that be nice, Sasuke?"


	3. Chapter 3

Two days later, Hinata awoke and got dressed before the rest of her family. So, she decided to catch up with a few of the chores that hadn't been done while Natsuko and Miyuki were gone. They were general house cleaning chores that were normally done by the two teenagers. But, they had fallen by the wayside in their week and a half absence. Finally, she did her usual morning chores by feeding the girls shared pet, a Shiba breed dog named Akihiko, and took out the trash. She then walked up stairs and gently knocked on the door to Sakura's room.

"Sakura-chan?" She asked tentatively.

Sakura was known to have a foul mood when woken up earlier than she wanted to be on her days off.

"Come on in, Hinata-chan. It's not locked." Sakura called.

Hinata opened the door and walked to see Sakura sitting on her bed, putting on her socks for the day.

"Good morning, Hinata-chan." Sakura said with a wide grin.

"Good morning. Um, when did you get up?"

"Oh, about thirty minutes ago I think. I took a quick ten minute shower, and then started gathering my clothes and getting dressed. I heard you shifting around down stairs. What were you doing?"

"Oh, I got up way before anyone else, so I jumped on some chores that needed doing."

"You did our girls' chores, didn't you?"

"Well, they have only been back from their mission for two days. I figured I should just let them rest and take care of things myself."

"He he, oh Hinata-chan. You'd give your daughter the shirt of your back if she asked, wouldn't you?"

"Well, it would depend on the situation. But, if she really needed it, I guess I could survive the embarrassment of being topless."

"That was a joke, Hinata-chan. But, it's nice to see how far you'd go for your offspring. You're a shoe-in for the mother of the year award."

"Well, thank you for saying that. But I know you'd go just as far for Miyuki-chan."

"I'd die for that girl. And for you, Naruto, and Natsuko-chan too. I'd give my life to protect all of you. After all you've done for me, even giving me the daughter I once thought I'd never have, I'd have to be either heartless or stupid not to look at you and Naruto like a kind of brother and sister. And Natsuko, well, I'll be damned if I say she didn't break her way right into my heart by calling me aunt Sakura as soon as she could talk. So, she's definitely family to me."

Hinata just beamed at Sakura's admittance of love for her family.

"Hey, Hinata-chan?"

"Yes?"

"We're all family here, right?"

"That's right. You said you and I are kind of like sisters. Well, I feel the same way. I know Naruto does as well. And Natsuko and Miyuki-chan? Well, they go without saying."

"Well, since we're all family here, I guess you deserve to hear a certain something from me every now and then."

"What's that?"

Sakura got up and walked over to Hinata. She then shocked Hinata thoroughly by throwing a tight hug on her.

"S-Sakura-chan…"

"I love you, Hinata-chan. You're more than a friend. You're the sister I never had. Back in the day, I never thought I'd be this close to you and now…well, all I can say is thank you for letting me be a part of this family. You even made me Natsuko-chan's godmother. I just wanna say thank you."

"Not a problem. You've done more than enough to show that you belong here. And, you made me Miyuki-chan's godmother, so we're even there."

Sakura nodded and then tilted her head to the side.

"Now, what exactly brought you up here?"

"Well, today is the anniversary of the day Natsuko and Miyuki-chan graduated from the academy. So, while I was doing the chores, I had this idea that maybe we could fix them a special breakfast in celebration. To show that we're still as proud of them now as we were on that day."

"Hey, not a bad idea. Let's get to it."

Working together, the two mothers created a breakfast fit for the children of any leader. Omelets, rice, oatmeal, various steamed vegetables and more scrambled eggs than should be allowed on one table.

"A meal fit for a king! Or at least a couple of Hokage daughters." Sakura kidded.

"We should go get them up now." Hinata said.

"Right. Oh, and Naruto too."

Hinata went upstairs and woke her husband in the way they had developed since the one month anniversary of their marriage. Each day, one would kiss the other to wake them and they alternated who would do it. Today was Hinata's turn.

"Mmm. I love that strawberry lip gloss you use, Hinata. It tastes great. What a great way to wake up."

Naruto then noticed his wife's state of dress.

"Wait a second. How long have you been up?"

"Close to an hour now. I got some chores done for the girls and Sakura-chan helped me make them a great breakfast. You remember what today to is, don't you, honey?"

"As their father and their Hokage I'm not allowed to forget. Of course I remember that today is the anniversary of the day they graduated. Give me a minute to get ready."

Hinata nodded and went and told Sakura that Naruto would join them momentarily. Sakura agreed to wait. Fifteen minutes later, Naruto emerged from the master bedroom, clad in an orange outfit and the usual white Hokage coat that, together, looked very similar to his fully evolved nine-tails chakra mode.

"Alright, I'm going to run out and pick something up for them. I'll leave a couple of clones to help you get them up."

Naruto threw up his usual hand sign and summoned two clones.

"Take good care of my girls, guys. All four of them."

The clones nodded and split up with Hinata and Sakura. Naruto headed out to retrieve the gift he had in mind for them. Hinata and the clone with her approached Natsuko's room first while Sakura and the other clone made their way down the hall. Hinata looked to the clone, who nodded that he was ready, and then knocked gently on the door.

"Natsuko. Breakfast is ready." Hinata said gently.

Soft shuffling could be heard inside. This was a sign of one thing. Natsuko had turned over in bed. Seeing that she wasn't getting up, Hinata and the clone entered the room. Hinata walked over to Natsuko's sleeping form and rolled back the covers. Exposing her daughter's innocent, sleeping face shot Hinata right back to Natsuko's infancy and how cute she was.

"Oh, it's a shame to have to wake her. Look how peaceful she is."

"But we have to." The Naruto clone said.

Hinata nodded and placed her right hand on Natsuko's corresponding cheek. She rubbed it gently as she cooed to Natsuko in a soft voice.

"Na-tsu-ko. It's time to get up."

Natsuko roused slowly. Her pale blue eyes opened to be greeted by the smiling faces of her parents. She sat up and yawned loudly. She then stretched her arms high above her head.

"Ah! Morning mom, morning dad. What's up?"

"Well, you now." The clone kidded.

"Funny, dad. Seriously, what's up? You guys don't usually come into my room like this."

Hinata strolled over to the calendar hanging on the wall near Natsuko's bed.

"Do you know what today is?"

"Umm, Thursday?"

"Well, you're technically right. But what else is it? Think hard. It's a very important day for you."

"Well, my and Miyuki's birthdays have already passed. Aunt Sakura's too. It's too early for yours or dad's. And your anniversary isn't for another two months. So, I believe that it is….Graduation day!"

"Good, you remembered. Well, now that you're up, you can eat the special breakfast Sakura-chan and I made for you and Miyuki."

"Is Miyuki up yet?"

"Sakura-chan and your father are waking her up now."

"What? But dad's right…oh, shadow clones, of course."

"That's right, there's a clone with your aunt Sakura. And actually, this is a clone too." Hinata said, gesturing to the clone.

"But, if that's a clone too, then where's the real dad?"

"He ran out to pick something up for you and Miyuki. He left his clones to help us wake you two."

"Oh, okay. Let's go then."

The three returned to the hallway and met up with Sakura, Miyuki and the other clone.

"Morning, sis. Morning Aunt Sakura."

"Morning, Natsuko-chan. Are you hungry?" Sakura asked.

"Am I ever not hungry in the morning?"

"Good point. Alright, let's get you two fed then. Let's go."

Natsuko and Miyuki ran down the stairs, while their mothers strolled behind, laughing joyfully. The girls ran to their places at the table, quickly gave thanks for the food and dug in.

"MMM! Mom, you missed your calling as a chef. Did you really need to be a ninja?" Natsuko said as she stuffed her face.

"Well, if she'd spent all her time in the kitchen as a chef, would she have had as many opportunities to get closer to your dad?" Sakura asked.

"'Gulp' good point, auntie. Who knows? I might not have been born if my parents had been anything but what they are now. Still though, mom could sell some of her best stuff." Natsuko said as she came up for air from her food.

"You could too, mom. You're a way better cook than you realize." Miyuki said.

"Well, maybe. But, you two are biased, so we really can't just go off of your words." Sakura said.

Sakura and Hinata watched their prides and joys eat with huge grins for a moment or two longer before finally deciding to sit down as well. Just as they made contact with the cushions in the chairs, a young jonin burst into the room.

"Lord Hokage!" He screamed.

He then noticed the family scene before him.

"Oh, I'm sorry, my ladies. I didn't mean to disturb your breakfast. But, I have an urgent request for aide sent for the Hokage." The jonin said, waving a file in the air.

"Naruto's not here right now. These two are just shadow clones. I don't know when he'll be back. Look, I'm practically his secretary. Just let me see the file." Sakura said.

"I don't know, Lady Sakura."

"How about if I authorized it? Then could we see it?" Hinata asked.

"Oh, yes of course, Lady Hinata. Everyone knows that the current Hokage's wife's word is practically as good as the Hokage's himself."

"Then I give authorization. Let's have a look, Sakura-chan."

"Right. Let's see here." Sakura said, taking the file.

"What's it say, mom?" Miyuki asked as Sakura opened the file.

"It's from a small village in the land of caves. It's a tiny spit of a land due south of here. If you ran at your or sister's top speed, allowing for breaks of course, you could probably get there in six hours."

"Okay. So what seems to be the problem?" Natsuko asked.

"The file says they're under attack."

"By who?" Miyuki asked.

"They aren't totally sure. It says they think that one of them is….Jugo."

"Curse seal Jugo? One of Sasuke Uchiha's old flunkies?" Natsuko asked.

"Yes. Him and one other young man. Judging from his size, they think he's a teenager. He wears a mask that resembles an oni. They're tearing up this poor village, for no apparent reason. The attack started at four a.m. this morning."

Natsuko looked at the clock.

"Holy crap! It's nine o'clock. This has been going on for five hours!" she yelled.

Miyuki jumped up right, slamming her hands loudly on the table as she did.

"Natsuko! Showers, now!"

"Just what I was thinking, Miyuki! Hey, dad clones!"

"Yes?" The clones answered together.

"One of you, go find dad. The other, round up Haruto-kun and Kiba-sensei. Go now!"

"Right!" The clones called and took off.

Twenty minutes later, all of team ten and Naruto were gathered in the Hokage's office.

"Alright team. You know your assignment. Thank you all for agreeing to do this on such short notice." Naruto said.

"You make it sound like your daughters gave us a choice, lord Hokage. But we're happy to help anyway. Now, about getting there. If we ran the entire time, we could get there in six hours. But the attacks have been going on for over five already. These people need our help now. So, Haruto and I have decided to feed Akamaru and Hoshiko these pills." Kiba said, revealing the pills in his hand.

"When they eat these, it will temporarily triple their energy levels and allow them to make the run in two hours. We'll just have to hold onto them." Haruto said.

"Is that safe for them?"

"As long as we don't have to give them a second dose within a five day period after the first dose wears off, then yes. All they'll be once they wear off is thirsty. In the meantime, they'll be super charged and itching to do something with all that energy." Kiba said.

"Well, okay then. Alright, team ten, investigate the attack in the land of caves and bring those responsible in if at all possible."

"Yes sir, Lord Hokage!" All of team ten responded.

The team bowed and ran out of the room. Kiba and Haruto fed the pills to their canine partners. Once the pills took full effect, Natsuko and Haruto jumped onto Hoshiko's back, while Kiba and Miyuki climbed aboard Akamaru. The ninja dog parent and child took off at full speed and the environment around the riders began to blur. Two hours later, the four arrived. Natsuko jumped off of Hoshiko and immediately went to work look for survivors.

"Can anyone hear me? I'm a kunoichi from the Hidden Leaf. My name is Natsuko! If you can hear my voice, yell!"

"In here, Natsuko-san!" Came a male voice from a nearby building.

Natsuko was joined by Miyuki and the sisters ran over to the building.

"I'm here. My sister Miyuki is too."

"We're trapped in here. The locks for the door are completely busted and none of us in here are strong enough to pry it open." The voice said.

"It's Miyuki. How many of you are there?" Miyuki asked.

"Six total. Two men and four women."

"Is anybody injured?" Miyuki asked.

"We all have some nasty cuts, but my wife's the worst off. I think her leg is broken. It's bent at a really nasty looking angle."

"Sounds broken to me. Alright, stand clear of the door. I'm going to break it down."

Natsuko saw bright blue chakra charge up in Miyuki's hand.

"Go for it, Habanero!" Natsuko cheered.

"Herculean strike!" the Haruno cried and slammed her fist into the door.

The door broke completely free of its hinges and flipped several times through the air before coming to a rest in the kitchen. Natsuko and rushed in and escorted the people out. Natsuko summoned a few clones and they gingerly carried the woman with the broken leg out of the house.

"Set her down easy right here, Natsukos." Miyuki said.

The clones did as told and sat the woman down in front of Miyuki. Miyuki quickly examined the woman's leg and then reached into a green pouch on the back of her skirt. She pulled out several splints, a roll of gauze and a stick.

"Here, bite down on this as hard as you can. Makes the next part easier, trust me." Miyuki said, handing the woman the stick.

The woman did as told and bit into the stick. Miyuki then grabbed the woman's leg from either side and forced the broken part back into alignment. The woman let out a muffled scream of agony.

"I'm really sorry about that. But it's the best way to do it. Alright, now I'm going to put a makeshift cast on your leg and heal what I can with my medical jutsu."

Miyuki got to work at a breakneck pace and had the procedure finished in a few minutes. She motioned for one of the able bodied men to come get her.

"This is only a field dressing. You'll need to get her to a proper hospital as quickly as possible."

"Right, of course. Thank you so much, Miyuki-san."

"I'm not done yet. Everybody line up. I'll heal your injuries."

While Miyuki worked on healing the group, the rest of team ten split up to find more survivors. Kiba found some children laying in a ditch, an inch of mud covering them head to toe but otherwise okay. He put them on Akamaru's back. Then the giant canine ran the children to safety. Haruto and Hoshiko prevented a roof from collapsing on a helpless couple. And so it went, as team ten rounded up most of the village.

"Thank goodness. That seems to be everybody. Not much in the way of injuries." Haruto said.

"It looks like the attack was focused on the buildings more than the people." Kiba said.

"I wonder why though." Miyuki said.

"Excuse me, Ninja-san, can you please help me?" A small boy asked as he walked up to Haruto.

"The name's Haruto. And sure. What do you need?"

"My folks and I can't find my little sister. She's only five years old. Can you help find her, Haruto-san?"

"Of course. I'll start at your house. Which way is that?"

The boy pointed off to his right. Haruto looked over in that direction, just in time to see a large fire erupt in the area.

"Oh no! I can tell from here! That's near our house!" the boy cried.

"Oh shit! Miyuki-chan, are you done? I need you and your water nature chakra."

"I just finished. Let's go! Kiba-sensei, get these people to safety."

"Got it…wait a second. Where the hell is Natsuko-san?"

"She wandered off….in that same direction! Oh hell, she's got to be right in the middle of whatever is going on over there!" Miyuki yelled and took off running.

Meanwhile, Natsuko raced in to see a young girl being terrified by a man in an oni mask.

"I won't ask again, kid. Where is the tome?"

"I don't know what you're talkin' about!" The girl shrieked.

"God, you voice is annoying! Fine, if you won't tell me, I'll just beat it out of you! Fire style: giant flame….."

"Wind style: Tornado barrage jutsu!" Came Natsuko's reply to the man's threat.

The man jumped out of the way of the miniature twisters Natsuko summoned and Natsuko raced in and scooped up the girl. She held her protectively in her arms.

"It's okay, little one. You're safe now. I'm one of the good guys, see?" Natsuko said, tugging at her forehead protector.

"Don't let the bad man hurt me, Miss Ninja!" The girl yelled, crying the entire time.

Natsuko held the girl's head close to her chest and let her sob into her Naruto-esque orange coat.

"Don't worry. He won't hurt anyone, anymore." Natsuko said as she glared at the man.

"Those eyes and that symbol on your forehead protector. You're a Konoha kunoichi and a member of the Hyuga clan!" the man yelled.

"Very observant of you. That's right, I descend from the Hyuga. I bear the ocular kekkei genkai called the byakugan. My name is Natsuko Uzumaki, and I'm going to destroy you for what you've done!" Natsuko cried, firing up her Byakugan.

As Natsuko's now enhanced vision zoomed in on the man's masked face, she could see his eyes. They were dark red and looked as though they had four pupils.

"Wait! Your eyes! That red color, those black dots that look like extra pupils. You have the Sharingan!"

"Heh heh. Nice of you to notice. Yes, I have the Sharingan. And that's because I'm a living, breathing Uchiha!"

"What? But, you're…"

"All gone. Not quite. There was one left after the war."

"Sasuke…"

"Don't utter my father's name so lightly!"

"Father?"

"That's right! He is my father. Since you were kind enough to introduce yourself, I shall do the same. After all, you've revealed yourself as an Uzumaki and your clan must be destroyed to begin the Uchiha's vengeance. So, you should at least know the name of the man who kills you all. My name is Yoru Uchiha, son of Sasuke Uchiha! Now, let's see which of our Kekkei Genkai is better, Natsuko!"

Natsuko set the girl down behind her.

"Go that way. You should run into two guys with really big dogs and a girl my age with bright red hair. They're my team. They'll keep you safe. Now go! This is going to get really, really loud!"


	4. Chapter 4

"Get going, kid! Trust me! You do not want to be here when the fireworks start!" Natsuko yelled.

"There's going to be fireworks?" the girl asked.

"Just run! Now!"

As the girl took off, Natsuko turned to face Yoru. She slid into the typical gentle step stance as a show of her Hyuga bloodline. But, her father's influence showed itself when one looked at her hands. Instead of the usual open palms, Natsuko's fingers clenched slightly, forming a sort of claw-like look and ready to snap into a closed fist at a moment's notice.

"Well then, can I have this dance?" Natsuko asked, trying to be cute.

"It would be my pleasure!" Yoru cried as he ran in.

Natsuko quickly took stock of everything she knew about Uchiha and their fighting style as she deflected thunderous blows from Yoru. She knew she had to watch out for his Sharingan and any ocular jutsu he might possess. Genjutsu was her weak point, so she could only hope that she could avoid any attempt at Tsukiyomi. Amaterasu was deadly, especially at close range. And Susano-o would be difficult to break through. But, these were things she had to worry about only if he possessed the mangekyo. Without it, she knew the Uchiha used a lot of fire jutsu and Sasuke was known for using lightning jutsu as well.

"Well, at least I can beat him in wind versus lightning. But his fire style…I wish Miyuki was here." Natsuko thought.

Natsuko then decided to go on the offensive and started to swipe at any chakra nodes Yoru left unprotected. She struck two in his left arm and one in his right shoulder.

"That should put a little damper on his jutsu, but not nearly enough. I need to hit more."

Natsuko saw Yoru throw up three hand signs. She knew these hand signs typically led into a fire jutsu.

"Fire style: dragon breathe bombs!" Yoru called out.

"Eight trigrams: sixty-four palms guard!" Natsuko yelled, hurriedly throwing up the defensive jutsu.

Natsuko managed to deflect the fire attack, which scorched the earth around her. She silently thanked her mother for hammering that particular technique into her. Hinata had been decently lenient with Natsuko in her gentle step training, but the sixty-four palms guard was a technique she had insisted her daughter learn.

"Okay, there's a lot of dust kicked up from his attack. This is a good chance for me!"

Natsuko summoned two clones. She sent one underground and then used a transformation jutsu. When the smoke cleared, Yoru saw Natsuko standing with a giant shuriken in her hand. She wasted no time and threw the weapon at him. Yoru easily dodged and was about to attack Natsuko when she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"A shadow clone? Then where's the real one?"

Just then, he felt the earth below him shift. Natsuko's clone came shooting up and caught Yoru on the chin with an uppercut, knocking him into the air. The clone then kicked Yoru into a tree, near where the giant shuriken had landed.

"Arg! You'll pay for that!"

Yoru then sensed chakra coming from the shuriken. A puff of smoke revealed Natsuko, poised with her finger tips aglow with chakra. She jabbed him repeatedly in the stomach with her finger tips, shutting off more chakra points. He then kicked her in the stomach and jumped away.

"So, you're the real one. That little combo of yours was cute. But cute doesn't win battles!"

"But it sure does make me adorable. Are you smitten with me yet?"

"Not even in your dreams. Now, let's get serious! Sharingan!" Yoru shouted as he fully unleashed his kekkei genkai.

"The Sharingan lets its user copy their opponent's moves and commit them to memory. I've got to be careful of what I use now. I don't want him to be able to slap me in the face with a rasengan." Natsuko thought.

Yoru flashed a couple of hand signs in rapid succession.

"Let me show you a ninjutsu I've copied! Water style: shark bullet!" Yoru yelled. He then used his chakra to change all of his saliva into water, which spewed forth from his mouth. The water formed into a vicious looking shark and flew at Natsuko.

"Wind style: gale force slash!" came Natsuko's reply.

Spinning rapidly, Natsuko infused the air with her chakra and sent it fly at the shark like invisible kunai. The blades of air cut the water shark to ribbons and some continued on to hit Yoru. Yoru's attention was immediately drawn to the largest cut, that being the one on his arm. He stared intently at his arm as blood seeped out.

"AH! You actually cut me!"

"Um, that's what was supposed to happen. You act like this is the first time you've seen your own blood….wait, it is, isn't it? Oh man. What kind of sheltered life have you lived? I saw my blood for the first time when I was four and I'm sixteen now. You're just now seeing it for the first time? Man, I didn't know an Uchiha could be raised so protectively. By the way, I notice there's no water around. So, you must've used your own spit to form that shark. Man, seriously, that's just nasty. Can you do me one favor and try not to hock anymore loogies at me? It's just too immature for ninja our age."

"Are you lecturing me?"

"If the shoe fits, wear it."

"Okay, now you die!"

Yoru flashed through six hand signs and reared back.

"Fire style: phoenix breath!"

As a huge torrent of fire shot forth from Yoru, Natsuko quickly went through three hand signs.

"Gotta be quick about this! Wind style: freezing gale!"

Natsuko's chakra whipped up the wind around her until it became ice cold. She then threw the cold wind with her chakra into the fire. As she had hoped, the combined power of the overall cold and the force of the jutsu itself was enough to cancel out Yoru's attack.

"I can do this all day, Yoru-san! You can't beat me with your fire jutsu because, if you can't tell already, I'm a wind user. We're always gonna be in my element. I've got more than enough wind power to deflect anything you throw at me." Natsuko called, becoming more confident thanks her success rate in wind versus fire.

Yoru then noticed a familiar face over Natsuko's shoulder. Jugo was finally returning.

"Alright, let's switch things up then!"

Yoru produced a kunai from the holster strapped to his leg. He spun the blade for a moment to keep Natsuko's eyes on it. He then rushed at her. He swiped at her once he got into striking range. As he had hoped, she jumped out of the way to avoid the attack. And, true to form, Jugo grabbed her in a bear hug as soon as she touched down from her dodge.

"Is this girl giving you trouble, Yoru-san?"

"Quite a bit, my old friend. Listen, I've still got the find the tome and she's already proclaimed herself as an Uzumaki. As much as I'd like to have her die at my hand, the tome is more important. So, could you take care of her for me?"

"Not a problem. One quick tweak of her head and neck should do it." Jugo said, grabbing the top of Natsuko's head.

"Fang over fang!" came a cry and two spiraling forces slammed into Jugo's back.

Jugo dropped Natsuko, who promptly jumped back to where the spirals had originated from. As she expected, she found Miyuki waiting there for her.

"Sorry we're late, sis." Miyuki said.

"It's alright. Listen, I need you and Haruto-kun to keep muscles there off my back. I can handle the small fry. He can't fight worth a damn. Keeps throwing out fire jutsus, when I've obviously got enough wind around me to amplify my jutsu into a wind style that can beat fire. So, I can handle him. Just keep the big guy off my back."

"Okay, I think we can manage that. But, who is the other guy?"

"He says his name is Yoru and he claims to be the son of Sasuke Uchiha. And I believe him, because he's got the Sharingan in both eyes. There aren't supposed to be any more Uchiha left, making getting ahold of two eyes next to impossible. So, anybody with a Sharingan nowadays only has one."

"Like Kakashi-sensei."

"Precisely. So, sis, you ready?"

Miyuki slid into a fighting stance incredibly similar to Sakura's at her age.

"Sister, I was born that way."

"That's why I love you, Miyuki. Yo, Haruto-kun! You ready to play?"

Haruto and Hoshiko landed on the ground a good twenty feet from the girls. They had succeeded in knocking Jugo another thirty feet away.

"We're beyond ready. Let's get wild!"

Jugo rocketed up from the ground, his face half way transformed by his power.

"You're going to die!" the monstrous man screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Let's go, everyone!" Natsuko cried.

Natsuko summoned two shadow clones and rushed Yoru. Meanwhile, Miyuki ran at Jugo, charging chakra into her hands. Jugo's arm transformed into a club like shape and threw a mighty punch at Miyuki. Miyuki returned it in kind and blocked it with her own supercharged punch. She then unleashed her other punch into his stomach, launching him back towards a waiting Haruto and Hoshiko. Haruto jumped up and curled into a ball. Hoshiko spun around and smacked her master with her side, sending him flying into Jugo's back. Haruto unfurled and sunk his claw like finger nails into Jugo's back. He spun him around with all his might and threw him down towards Hoshiko.

"Now girl!" Haruto said, whipping up a hand sign.

Hoshiko transformed into a clone of Haruto and then the two performed another fang over fang attack into Jugo's spine and ribs at the same time. As they let Jugo fall, Miyuki rushed in, both fists a blaze with chakra. She planted both into the monstrous man's stomach and sent him crashing into the ground twenty feet away. She then charged to chakra to her feet and used it to launch herself as high as possible. As she had expected, Miyuki felt that the air was moister at the level she was at and took advantage. She flipped through four quick hand signs.

"Water style: needle rain!" Miyuki shouted as she charged the moist air with her chakra and formed it into needle like water drops.

She then used her chakra to hurl these drops downward and bombarded Jugo with them. Hoshiko and Haruto ran in as Miyuki landed.

"That ought to keep him down for a bit." Haruto said.

The two ninja then heard Jugo rousing. As he got up, he transformed completely into a monstrous form.

"Oh shit! Grandma Tsunade told me about this. She said the Raikage told her that Jugo fought him at the Kage summit and turned into this form. While the Raikage was able to beat him, he did admit that it wasn't as easy as he would've expected." Miyuki said.

"Great, this form even gave the Raikage trouble. Which means it's going to be like fighting a devil for us." Haruto said.

"He can't be indestructible. We just have to keep hitting him as hard as we can. He's got to crack at some point."

"Ah!" The two heard Natsuko cry.

The two saw Natsuko getting burned by the first fire jutsu Yoru had managed to hit her with.

"Natsuko!" Miyuki cried, turning towards her sister.

Miyuki then felt a pressure on her back pushing her off to the right.

"Look out, Miyuki-chan!" Haruto yelled.

Miyuki hit the dirt and looked to see Haruto getting rocketed into a nearby tree by a furious punch from Jugo. Haruto had saved her from this attack. When Haruto hit the ground, Miyuki could hear a sickening crack ring out.

"Agh!" Haruto screamed in agony, and clutched at his ribs.

"Haruto-kun…." Miyuki stated in shock.

She could then hear sadistic, monstrous laughter coming from Jugo.

"You're next." He stated to her.

At that moment, Miyuki tapped into some of Chikako's power. Her normally deep green eyes flashed into blood red and her pupils dilated and changed from round to vertical slits. A red, mist like chakra flowed from her body as she turned towards Jugo.

"No, you're next! You're dead!" She yelled at the top of her lungs.

She rocketed up and clocked Jugo with a mighty upper cut. She charged chakra into her hands, which started out blue and then rapidly turned red. She then planted both fists into Jugo's gut as he came back down from the upper cut. This sent him flying into Yoru. Miyuki then stared hatefully at Jugo before turning her attention to Haruto. She raced over and began to try to heal.

"Haruto-kun, you idiot. Why did you do that? I have a fox. I could've easily recovered from that. Why?"

"Well, you know, how often does a guy get to save the pretty girl he likes?"

"What?"

Haruto tried to speak again, but found it too painful. There was an ever escalating pain in his chest that took most of the wind out of him every time it hit a new level.

"Lay still, Haruto-kun. I'll heal you."

Miyuki then began to try to heal Haruto. She poured every ounce of chakra she had left into the healing, but Haruto showed no signs of getting better.

"Damn it! I'm not good enough….wait! Hey, Chikako!" Miyuki cried as she delved into her own mind.

Miyuki found herself before a great gate in a field of flowers. She saw the massive fox behind the gate.

"What do you want, red?" Chikako asked.

"I need some of your chakra."

"Yeah? What else is new?"

"Please! I need it to heal my friend. His ribs are broken. I'm not sure how many, but I know that my chakra isn't enough. I know we can transfer some of your chakra to him and that'll heal him up really quickly."

"We're talking about that dog boy, right? Heh, let him suffer. That's what he gets for getting in the way of a superhuman punch."

"Chikako…."

"Listen, you ought to consider yourself lucky. I let you tap a little of my power to knock the big lummox for a loop. And that was only because I was curious to see what would happen. But you should still consider yourself lucky."

"Chikako….." Miyuki said, shaking.

Suddenly, Miyuki dropped to her knees and clasped her hands in a begging formation.

"Please! I'm begging you! I have to heal him! I need to heal him! Please, Chikako! I've always tried to do right by you. You know I have. That's why I tried so hard to get you to tell me your name, because I didn't want to call you just fox or demon or something like that. The way I see it, you're sort of an internalized sister. I mean, we came from the same source. Only, I was born from mom's body and you were born from her chakra. But still, good enough for me. So, please, sister, do me this one favor. I'm begging you!" Miyuki cried, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Oh fine. If it'll make you stop blubbering like a baby. But I need something from you first."

"What? Do you want me to let you out?"

"Oh that would be fantastic. But I don't really expect it. So, I'll settle for one of those flowers. Give one of them to me."

"What? You just want a flower?"

"I'll give you credit, red. Your mind's a right pretty place. So, can you imagine being kept in a place like this and you can't touch one flower?"

"I see. Well then…"

Miyuki turned to a very pretty bunch of flowers next to her. She picked enough to form a small bouquet. She then walked it over to the gate and pushed it through the bars.

"Here you go. You can have more than one."

"Hmph, suck up. Oh well, a deal's a deal. Here, stick out your hand."

Miyuki held out her hand and Chikako touched a claw to it. A lite red glow flowed around Miyuki's hand.

"There, that should be enough. Just use it to heal him like you normally would."

"Great, thanks a lot."

"Whatever."

"Alright, now to heal Haruto-kun."

Miyuki started to walk away , but stopped when she reached about five feet away.

"Chikako…"

"What?"

"Just so you know, one day, I will finish the Jinchuriki training and obtain nine-tails mode. When that happens, I'll personally bust that gate apart and you can run free in these flowers all you want." Miyuki said and then walked away until she faded out of her mind.

"Hmph, promises, promises." Chikako huffed.

Back in the physical world, a dark red chakra cloak formed around Miyuki and sprouted one tail. She then began to heal Haruto.

"She's in one tail mode and she looks calm. She must've gotten Chikako to give her some chakra. Nice one, Miyuki." Natsuko said.

"What the hell is that power? …..I'll bet it's the tome! She found it and tapped into it!" Yoru said, as he staggered to his feet.

He rocketed towards Miyuki and whipped out a kunai.

"Give me the tome!" he yelled as he neared Miyuki.

Miyuki turned in time to see Natsuko holding the kunai off with her own bare hand. As blood trickled from the wound, it was clear that Natsuko was radiating the same red, mist like chakra Miyuki had earlier. Her anger that Yoru dared to attack her beloved sister had triggered it and she had used it to ramp up her speed so she could beat Yoru to Miyuki.

"Natsuko…" Miyuki started.

"Focus, Miyuki! Stop worrying about me and heal Haruto-kun! I'll handle this!"

Natsuko then grabbed Yoru by the wrist and hurled him back over towards Jugo. She stared daggers at them.

"You attack this innocent village, endanger the lives of everyone, even children, hurt my friend and you dare to attack my beloved sister while she's trying to heal someone. Oh, I am going to enjoy this."

Natsuko shut off her Byakugan. Its power and the graceful techniques that went with it would not be needed for what she had in mind. She then shut her eyes and dived into her mind. She soon found herself in an arena like area, facing a huge cage.

"Akahana, I'm not gonna ask. I want your chakra, so cough it up." Natsuko said to the fox inside the cage.

"Oh really? And why, pray tell?"

"I'm fighting Curse seal Jugo and a so called Uchiha. They've really pissed me off with the things they've done. I want to teach them a lesson!"

"Really now? Well, that certainly sounds like something I would be willing to donate some chakra for. Just how much of a lesson are you planning on teaching them?"

"I'm thinking three tails worth."

"Is that all? You're holding back. Oh well, it's your lesson, teach it how you will. Just make it a good one. I don't wanna regret this." Akahana said, extending a claw.

Natsuko grabbed the claw and absorbed the chakra.

"Have fun, sunshine." Akahana said jokingly as Natsuko faded away.

In the real world, Natsuko's face took on a feral appearance. Her teeth became fang like and her nails grew into claws. A red chakra cloak surrounded her, just as it had Miyuki, but this time it sprouted three tails.

"What? More of those tail like things! You have even more of the tome's power? How are you two doing this?" Yoru shouted.

Natsuko merely growled and stuck her right hand out to the side. She instantly charged a fearsome rasengan into her palm.

"Is that a Jutsu? You're not just trying to scare us off, you actually want to fight? Very well then. Let's do this, Jugo!"

Jugo dashed in first. He tried to throw a powerful punch at the transformed kunoichi, but she beat him to the punch by head butting him as hard she could. She then planted the rasengan into his stomach.

"Rasengan!" Natsuko screamed with bestial fury.

Jugo was rocketed back a hundred feet and was knocked out when he slammed into the ground.

"What? She knocked out Jugo in two hits? What in the world is she?" Yoru said to himself.

He then noted Natsuko was rushing towards him. He quickly flipped through some hand signs.

"Fire style: fire ball jutsu!" Yoru hurriedly cried as he began to spit as many fire balls as he could at Natsuko.

The transformed girl just plowed through the balls of flame and slammed into Yoru with enough force to knock him back twenty feet. The shockwave from the attack traveled through his body and shattered his oni mask. His face greatly resembled a young Sasuke, but his hair took on a shorter form of his mother's hair and his nose resembled hers as well.

"Damn it. One more hit like that and I'm done for. The power of the tome is truly great. But just where are they keeping it?" Yoru muttered to himself as he dropped to one knee.

He then saw Natsuko charging another Rasengan.

"That sphere shaped jutsu again. I know what it did Jugo and he's far more durable than me, at least for now. I have to stop that attack. I guess it's time to try out that one lighting jutsu."

As Yoru readied himself, Kiba returned to see what was going on.

"Oh my god." Kiba stammered as he took in the nature of his team.

He saw Yoru and the hand gesture he was making.

"He looks like Sasuke so much its scary. And that hand gesture…wait, isn't that the same one Sasuke used to…don't tell me he knows how to do that too!"

Yoru soon proved that he did know the jutsu Kiba was thinking of. A ball of crackling lightning chakra formed in his hand.

"Lightning style: Chidori!" Yoru yelled.

Natsuko and Yoru dug in their heels and then charged one another. Their jutsus clashed violently and eventually there was a massive explosion as one jutsu overcame the other. Yoru was knocked away and Natsuko remained standing, signaling her victory in the jutsu clash. Natsuko immediately charged another rasengan and came screaming in to deliver it when a blast of water from nowhere shot her into a nearby tree.

"What? Where did that come from?" Yoru wondered out loud.

"Do you always let yourself and your friends get this beat up in a fight, Yoru-kun?" Yoru heard a familiar voice say.

"Suigetsu!" Yoru yelled as the man came into view.

Suigetsu's arm was generating the water blast that knocked Natsuko away.

"Man, what a mess." Suigetsu said.

"What are you doing here, Suigetsu?"

"I got back a while after you left. Your mom told me where you went and demanded I go catch up. I didn't have anything else to do, so I thought why not? And here I am."

"Great, help me take care of these two. They've got the tome hidden on them somewhere."

"No, that's where you're wrong. They don't have such a thing on them."

"What? Then where are they getting this power?"

"They're Jinchuriki, Yoru-kun. Meaning the carry tailed beasts within them. Judging by the look of their chakra and going off memory, it's probably a nine-tailed fox inside each of them. I'll go out on a limb and say these two are the daughters of Konoha's current Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki. And that means they've got power for the nine-tailed fox, maybe even foxes of their own if the nine-tails can have kids, inside them. This means one thing."

"What?"

Suigetsu redirected the flow of water from his arm to Yoru and then Jugo. He scooped them up like this and pulled them to him.

"We aren't a match for them as we are. Time for a tactical retreat. We'll get the tome later. Now let's go and no buts."

"Hmph, next time, Uzumaki clan." Yoru said as he and Suigetsu threw down smoke pellets.

"After them!" Haruto wheezed.

Miyuki clamped a still cloaked hand over Haruto's mouth.

"You're more important. We can catch them later. Kiba sensei, are Hoshi-chan and Aka-kun still revved up from the pills?"

"They should be."

"Then help me load up Haruto-kun. We have to go back home and get Haruto-kun to the hospital or at least to see my mom."

""Right. Um, what about Natsuko-san?"

"Oh, right. Hey, Natsuko, shows over. Power down."

Natsuko heard Miyuki and took several deep breathes as she let the power fade from her body.

"Alright, all clear. Let's go. We'll send a crew to clean up here and stand guard."

As Natsuko helped load up Haruto, she wondered about Yoru.

"What was this tome thing he was so eager to get? I hope somebody back home has some answers."


	5. Chapter 5

Miyuki stood at the window of Haruto's hospital room.

"Haruto-kun." Miyuki muttered, inwardly blaming herself for her friend's condition.

The door to the room opened and Sakura stepped out, taking off her gloves.

"Is he okay, mom?" Miyuki asked as she ran up to her mom.

"Amazingly, he's well on his way to a full recovery already. I guess you really did get Chikako to give you some chakra so you could heal him, like you said. Nice going, Yuki." Sakura said, rubbing Miyuki's head.

"I was just desperate. I felt like I had to heal him, no matter what. And I still feel responsible. I should have never taken my eyes off Jugo. I just feel so…"

Sakura put her hands on Miyuki's shoulders and spoke to her with a motherly tone in full effect.

"Listen, honey. I know how you feel. There was a time when I just felt so inferior to Sasuke and your father. I felt like all I was doing was being a hindrance to them. I imagine that you feel something similar right now. Like you're just a problem. You're lapse in judgment got Haruto-san hurt, that's what you're thinking, right? Well, that may be so. I won't lie to you there. But Haruto-san told me something while I was working on him. He told me to tell you that he didn't want you to blame yourself. He knows it's natural to worry about your closest kin in times of danger. He said if it had been Kiba-kun, he probably would've done the same thing. And he says thank you for patching him up. So, all in all, you did pretty well. So don't beat yourself up and just keep your eyes peeled a little more next time. I doubt this is the last we've heard of this 'son of Sasuke'."

"Okay, mom. Thanks for the pep talk. So, do you really think this Yoru guy is who he claims to be? I mean, Natsuko saw it with her Byakugan. He had the Sharingan in both eyes. He used fire jutsu and even clashed with Natsuko with a Chidori. So all the signs are there, but, can it really be? I mean, after all this time, could Sasuke Uchiha still be alive?"

Miyuki noticed the uneasy expression on her mother's face.

"Do you still have feelings for him, mom?"

"I have feelings for him as a friend that I would love to see return to us, just like your father would. But, romantic, well, I overcame those long ago. I'm just uneasy because I wonder, if Sasuke is alive, then what is he like right now? Is he the dark, brooding, kill and destroy everything Sasuke, or is he the man that stood with Naruto to save the ninja world from Madara's rule? Or maybe, dare I hope, has he gotten even better and has become a lite hearted Sasuke since becoming a father?"

"I don't know, mom. That Yoru kid seemed to be pretty set on destruction, so that doesn't bode well for a happy go lucky Sasuke."

"I can still hope. But, you do have a good point. We'll just have to see if he turns up."

"Yeah."

Miyuki's gaze shifted over to the window again.

"Hey, mom?" Miyuki asked, without looking away from the window.

"Hmm?"

"What do you think of Haruto-kun?"

"Well, I'm very appreciative of him watching your back like that. And I'm glad he's such a good friend and teammate to you. And I think he's strong and very loving towards animals. Why do you ask?"

"Well, before the pain got to be too much for him to keep talking, I asked Haruto-kun why he saved me, when with my powers, I could've easily recovered from Jugo's punch. And you know what he said?"

"No, honey. What did he say?"

"He said something 'well, how often does a guy get to save the pretty girl he likes'." Miyuki said, a slight blush entering her cheeks.

"Did he now? Well, sounds like someone has got his eye on my little treasure here." Sakura said, putting her arm around Miyuki's shoulders.

"You know, Miyuki, I think you should go talk to him. I know your trying to ask me what I think about you dating, am I right?"

Miyuki's blush intensified and she looked away from her mother.

" 'Giggle' Honey, I don't care what you decided for your love life. As long as you don't hook up with some kind thug or murderous criminal, then your decision on who you go out with is the only one that matters. And, there are worse fish in the sea than Haruto-san. So go on, go talk to him. At least clear the air with this whole and we'll see where it goes."

"Okay, here goes."

Miyuki walked inside the room and approached Haruto.

"Hey, Haruto-kun."

"Hey, Miyuki-chan. I gotta say, I feel pretty good. Tell your mom whatever that medicine she gave me was is awesome. Although, I guess you already did most of the work. I never imagined a demon fox's chakra feeling so warm and inviting. It's almost like it was some kind of lovely magic you were weaving. And now I think that medicine is making me act a little dippy."

Miyuki examined the bottle she had seen Haruto drink from when her mother had given him the medicine. She took a whiff of the potion inside the bottle and knew instantly what it was.

"Yeah, this kind of stuff will do that to you. And wait till you fall asleep. If you thought that any weird dreams you had before were freaking crazy, this stuff's effect on your dreams will blow your mind."

"Yeah, I'm actually kind of looking forward to that. My dreams are usually kind of boring."

"Natsuko says her dreams usually involve a ton of Ichiraku ramen and her becoming Hokage." Miyuki said, inching closer to Haruto.

"I could see that. Her becoming Hokage, I mean. I mean, she's strong, kind and pretty smart. And she's got a kick ass right hook. She'd make a great candidate."

"Yeah, I think so too. So, uh, speaking of candidates, um, do you have any, um, you know?"

"Have any what?"

"You know! Perspective girlfriends."

"Um, well, uh, no. Not really. You see, a lot of people look at us Inuzuka's and think we're weird because of how tight we are with our canine partners. That's we have to marry dog lovers. Other people just think we're the freaky family that's way too close its dogs."

"Well, I love dogs. I have one you know. Well, he's mine and Natsuko's, but still mine."

"Yeah, I know. Um, what exactly are you getting at here, Miyuki-chan? Um, this is about what I said earlier isn't it?"

"Yeah. It is."

"Um, well, listen. What I said, I, I really did mean it. I know I can't lie to you, so I might as well not even try. I like you, Miyuki-chan. I always have. Ever since we were little and I first saw you. You were on a picnic with your family. You were wearing this adorable strawberry pink sun dress and I remember thinking you were the cutest thing. And you got better with age. You're hot, Miyuki-chan. I'm just gonna say it. You are hot. And you're strong too. And you're brave, and kind and smart and, well, a bunch of things I admire. You're not just a beauty on the outside, you're a beauty on the inside too. I was really happy when I learned that not only was I going to luck out and get to be in my dad's squad when I graduated, but you were gonna be in the team too. I was as a happy as ninja dog with a new chew toy, and that's really happy. And, I just love being around you. You make things feel better. I feel like a better person. Like I'm a better guy just because you're around. Or, maybe it's better to just say that I feel like I want to be better. To impress you. And, well, I'd say a lot of things if my head wasn't all screwy thanks to that medicine. I take it back, that's the worst stuff ever."

Miyuki chuckled and then finally reached to Haruto's bed.

"Listen, Haruto-kun. I just want to say thank you. And, I want to give you something as thanks. Something I haven't given anybody before."

"And what's that?"

"This." Miyuki said, as she leaned in and kissed Haruto quickly but softly on the lips.

Outside, Sakura squealed with delight, for she knew for a fact what Miyuki had just done.

"What?" Was all Haruto could muster.

"That was my first, you know? My first kiss. Well, on the lips anyway. I've kissed my mom, my dad, my sister and my aunt on the cheek lots of times. But, you're the first person I ever kissed on the lips. So, Haruto-kun, you have my first kiss. You better like it." Miyuki said with a wink.

Haruto followed Miyuki's walk to the door with a dumb founded look.

"We'll talk more when you're all healed up. I'll see you then, Haruto-chi."

Miyuki walked out the door and signaled for her mother to follow. A moment later, they heard Haruto let out an excited yell. Miyuki smiled and blushed as Sakura patted her on the back.

Meanwhile, Naruto paced in his office.

"Damn it, I feel like a failure."

"Don't say that, dad." Natsuko said from her spot in the corner.

"That's right, dear. You aren't a failure." Hinata said from her seat next to Natsuko.

Natsuko was present because she was the one to inform Naruto of what had happened. Kiba had gone home to fetch Ten-ten, while Miyuki went to the hospital with Sakura and Haruto. Hinata had been visiting Naruto at work when Natsuko had arrived.

"You don't understand girls. I've told so many people, even my own father, that I would find a way to bring peace to the shinobi world. And then this happens. A tiny village gets blown apart by a couple of rogue ninja. And then my own daughters had to fight them in what could've been a deadly duel. I'm glad it went the way you said it did, Natsuko, but it could've been a lot worse. And it just makes me feel like I haven't gotten an inch closer to my goal of peace."

"Dad, peace doesn't just happen. It takes a lot of work and a long time to get it going. I know you've laid impressive ground work. And it will lead to peace one day. This mess right now is just a bump in the road that I will make sure gets smoothed over. Just for you, daddy. So, just keep your head. You aren't a failure. You've just got a little snag holding you back."

"Heh, thanks, Natsuko. You sure are a blessing."

Natsuko beamed at the praise.

"So, now, let's see if I got this right. A young man named Yoru fought you while claiming to be Sasuke's son. And you saw that he had the Sharingan in both eyes. And he was looking for something called a tome. That's why he and Jugo attacked the village in the first place. And then, just when you were about to win the fight, Suigetsu showed up and they got away."

"That's right, dad."

"Hmm, I wonder what this tome thing is."

"Well, I sent out a clone while you weren't looking dad and got somebody that might just know."

"Oh, really? Who?"

"I just released my clone. So I know that my possible informant will be here soon. You'll see who it is shortly."

A moment later, the door opened and Tsunade stepped inside.

"Grandma?" Naruto asked.

"Hey, ya brat. It's been a while. Hinata-san, you still look radiant. Even now, with Natsuko-chan all grown up. Motherhood suits you so well."

"Oh, well, thank you." Hinata said, blushing slightly.

"Grandma, you know what this tome is?" Naruto asked.

"I might know what is. I can't guarantee anything."

"Well, what do you know, Grandma?" Natsuko asked, latching onto Tsunade's arm.

Tsunade smiled at Natsuko's slight show of affection. Tsunade had served as a surrogate grandmother for Natsuko and Miyuki since they had been born. So both girls could resist showing at least a little affection when she was around.

"Well, when I was going through my Sanin training, I heard a rumor. Nowadays, it's become sort of an urban legend that folks like the foundation would want to keep hidden. So, if you've never heard of this, blame them. As for how I found out more than just the rumor I heard, well, let's just say I have my methods." Tsunade said with a strange, disturbing smile.

Naruto and Hinata both gulped and nodded.

"So, what did you hear?" Hinata asked.

"Well, the rumor I heard was simply that there was once an underground group within Konoha was trying to develop some weapons with enough power to destroy, or at least repel, a tailed beast. Later on I managed to get the details. While the group's name, or if it even had one, still remain a mystery to me, I do know this. Their idea of a weapon was a portable chakra cannon, disguised as a set of books, or tomes. There was one book for each chakra nature, so five in total. When the proper jutsu was used upon the books, they would release their power as a powerful blast made of all five natures. But, where they got the power from the books is frankly amazing."

"Where did the power come from, Grandma?" Natsuko asked.

"They had volunteers, hundreds of them, step forward to have their chakra completely drained and be sealed into the books. Imagine, hundreds of people representing the natures. I mean, I don't know how many there actually were, but say each nature had three hundred volunteers representing it. That's fifteen hundred volunteers for this project."

"Wow, the tailed beasts were even more feared back then. I mean, I figured they were, but I didn't know how deep the fear was." Naruto said, touching his stomach instinctively.

"People have learned a lot since then. Thanks in no small part to you and Kurama. Hmm, still feels strange to call the nine-tails by a real name. But, he has proven himself to be a valuable ally, so I guess he deserves to be called by his true name. Anyway, all these volunteers stepped forward to have their chakra drained. But, something went wrong."

"What?" Natsuko asked.

"From what I've heard, the jutsu that was written into the tomes in order to drain the chakra and seal it was written incorrectly. This simple mistake caused a huge tragedy."

"What happened, Grandma? Come on, tell us!' Natsuko demanded.

"Natsuko, be respectful of your elders. Let Lady Tsunade tell the story at her own pace." Hinata scolded, but in her usual soft tone.

"Sorry mom. Sorry, Grandma." Natsuko said.

"It's alright, little one. Now, are you really ready to hear what happened?"

Everyone nodded.

"Okay then. When the jutsu was activated and turned on the volunteers, it sucked out not only their chakra, but their very souls as well and sealed them within the books."

"What!" Natsuko screamed, finally breaking away from Tsunade in surprise.

"That's the stories I've heard said. Their souls were accidentally removed along with their chakra and sealed inside the tomes. And being as superstitious as they were back then, no one tried to free the spirits. Too afraid of a vengeful ghost typhoon being unleashed, I guess."

"My God. If these things actually exist, then those souls have been sitting inside those tomes for who knows how long, itching to get out. God, they must be enraged beyond belief." Natsuko said.

"If that's what they really are, and if they really exist, then they are dangerous items that shouldn't be left out and about." Hinata said.

"These are only rumors and stories I've heard, but it's the only thing that came to mind when Natsuko's clone gave me the rundown. And, now that I think about it, I heard that the tomes were scattered, so the angry spirits couldn't be released. And one was said to be hidden in a small village south of Konoha."

"That explains the land of caves incident." Naruto said.

"Naruto, honey, you know that we have to do something." Hinata said.

"Mom's right, dad. I mean, if these tomes really do exist, then Yoru's in way over his head and has no idea whatsoever. Imagine the chaos it would cause if he unleashed those spirits. And, even if they aren't real, someone who seems to believe in them wholeheartedly and has as much power and as many powerful friends as Yoru does is a dangerous person we shouldn't just let roam free." Natsuko said.

"Natsuko's right, Naruto-san. We should at least send out some trackers to see if we can't find Yoru and bring him in for questioning." Tsunade said.

"Hmm, agreed. There's a lot of things I'd like to ask him. Alright, I'll get right on that. The anbu will begin tracking procedures immediately. Meanwhile, Natsuko, I want you and Miyuki to go back to the land of caves. Since you fought off Yoru, they should trust you or at least be willing to trust you. Take whoever you want, except for Kiba-san and Haruto-san of course, for back up. See if you can find out anything else about this tome that the village supposedly has."

"Alright, um, how about we take mom and Aunt Sakura?"

"Sounds good to me. Alright, people, let's get to work."


End file.
